The banh xeo cart of a single father raising two autistic children

(NLDO) - Thanks to the sharing of the online community, the small banh xeo cart of Mr. Huynh Dan (Dong Thanh commune, Ho Chi Minh City) is increasingly crowded with customers, everyone praising its deliciousness.

These past few days, Huynh Dan’s pancake cart has been steaming hot all the time, he has been working non-stop. Thanks to everyone’s love, he can now bring his goods home earlier.

Mr. Huynh Dan started his business with a Central Vietnamese pancake cart in 2018.

Raising two autistic children alone

At around 2 p.m., Mr. Dan and his two sons, carrying ingredients from home to the pancake stand on Trinh Thi Mieng Street (Dong Thanh Commune, Ho Chi Minh City), prepared to set up shop. Two hours later, the first batches of crispy, golden pancakes were "baked".

Banh xeo is deep fried, has pork and bean sprouts.

Golden, crispy pancakes just "out of the oven"

Pouring pancakes, chatting with customers, and sweating profusely, Mr. Dan never took his eyes off his two young sons.

In 2015, Mr. Dan and his wife were overwhelmed with happiness when they gave birth to two healthy, handsome twin boys. About a year later, he felt something was wrong so he took his children to the hospital. The doctor diagnosed that one child had tongue-tie and the other was normal, however, if you want more accurate results, you should have a follow-up examination when the children are 2 years old.

Since then, his family has been taking their two children to see doctors everywhere, hoping that they can say "Daddy" and "Mommy" like other children their age. However, the truth is that both children have autism and have difficulty communicating. The family has tried every way to get intervention as soon as possible, at times the cost of intervention was up to 15 million VND/month.

"They both understand everything I say, but they just don't want to talk. Since my wife left, I have to sell goods and look after the children by myself, so it's harder. There are days when I finish selling late, and the children have to wait until 2 a.m. before I can sleep," Mr. Dan confided.

As a habit, whenever the father makes pancakes, the son comes close to observe.

Although they can't talk yet, the two sons always go to work with their father.

There are many more difficult situations than mine!

He has been selling banh xeo since 2018, using the flour mixed according to a family recipe taught by his sister. Over the years, the banh xeo cart has always been on fire, and has had a certain number of customers. On average, he sells about 200 pancakes a day, priced at 7,000 VND each. In addition, he also sells balut and beef wrapped in betel leaves.

Mr. Minh Tuan, a worker in Ba Diem commune, said he is a "regular customer" and comes here to eat almost 1-2 times a week.

"I am also a Central Vietnamese, originally from Quang Ngai province, the same hometown as Mr. Dan. This pancake has a hometown flavor that cannot be mistaken for any other restaurant. The pancake is small, crispy, sometimes burnt on the edges, eaten with herbs, making many people enjoy it" - Mr. Tuan excitedly said.

Optimism is the key that helps Mr. Dan overcome difficulties.

Mr. Dan also sells balut eggs and beef wrapped in betel leaves.

From 5pm to 7pm is the time when the banh xeo cart is most full of smoke.

In recent days, the story of a single father raising two autistic children has been spreading on social media. Mr. Dan’s banh xeo cart suddenly has more customers. Some people even traveled more than 20 km to eat banh xeo and visit the health of the father and his three children. He had to ask his nephew to help him in order to keep up with the orders.

"I thank everyone for coming to eat banh xeo but please allow me not to accept any support in cash. Because I am still healthy, I am still able to take care of my two children. Everyone coming to eat makes me very happy, thanks to that I can work tirelessly. Everyone please save that money for people in more difficult circumstances" - Mr. Dan shared.

When asked about his hopes for the future, Mr. Dan looked back at his two children who were playing and thought for a few seconds.

"Looking up, I may not be as good as anyone else, but looking down, I am still luckier than many people. Thank God, my two children are very obedient and healthy. Now, I just wish I had a lot of health to accompany my children. I hope my business will be stable and I will have more time to practice speaking with my children and understand them better" - Mr. Dan said softly.

Source: https://nld.com.vn/xe-ban-banh-xeo-cua-nguoi-cha-don-than-nuoi-2-con-tu-ky-196250807015154463.htm